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CFW Day 2: A new, interactive order

Alongside with the fashion shows in the evening, other activities were scheduled during the day to keep people busy. See the Diane Pernet Q&A from the day before. With that, my expectations grew higher and, on some points they were even met. Let's take it from the start. Before noon, the opening of an interactive exhibition was scheduled at the mall. I arrived an hour later than the official starting time only to see the exhibitors were still unpacking. Some of the stands were already up though, so I made the rounds and took a few photos:

The day was initially planned to continue with the opening of an exhibition dedicated to Alexander McQueen. At the time I arrived at the hotel to see it (late, but still) i found out it was postponed for the evening, right before the fashion shows. Thing is, because of a certain superposition of events, I didn't get to see it in the evening either (if it really begun then, I still don't know until this hour).

One thing I was really excited to attend was the second workshop of the festival, entitled "21 century fashion". I had no idea which the speakers will be or any other clues, but everything was a great, pleasant surprise.

It seems to be some sort of a trend, being fashionably late with... almost everything if not downright cancelling events, and this workshop had a fair share of this feeling. Finally, almost half an hour after, everyone was ready to start the discussion. The speakers were Mrs. Ioana Avram, Alina Ene and Lucian Broscatean. A few words were addressed by Alin Galatescu, who reinforced the idea of this fashion week being a dialog between the artistic elements which together define the fashion in the 21st century. In other words, how fashion and lifestyle blend one into another and evolve together.

From my point of view, this was the most instructive discussion/workshop/presentation. The first speaker was Mrs. Ioana Avram, who made some relevant remarks while defining the 21st century. She started with stating that this century is characterized by changes, systems falling down, and not only from the economical point of view. What we are facing right now are fast changing "cyber-values" promoted through the internet.Currencies, if you like. There are some "prophets" who establish these trends by acquiring information from all over the world. This trend prognosis involves thousands of specialists and can predict directions for the next 20, 30 to 50 years. One example is Faith Popcorn, of which - to be honest - I had no idea existed, but this can only increase the level of awareness: we are not floating unguided here. The most important point however is to realize once and for all that trends don't involve just clothes. They refer to all areas and aspects of life, be it communication, art, architecture, film, etc. That is why it is called lifestyle.

The second one to speak was Alina Ene, and the subject of choice was fashion and technology, the ways to incorporate technology into clothes. The so called smart garments could be capable of transmitting our feelings, to reflect our personality, sometimes in real time. There are some major directions in which this idea is being developed: intelligent textiles, ways of production (techniques) and wearable electronics.

The first one, intelligent clothes already exist, but their going mainstream would mean the death of some industries (think about washing machines if they weren't a necessity). In this field, the pioneer is Philips (why am I not amazed?) which is producing textiles for space age marketing.

Last but not least, Lucian Broscatean spoke about Postmodern Fashion, the ways in which contemporary fashion depend on technology and art, with implications mostly in the concept area. The story in each garment, that close relation established between clothes and the context in which they are produced or delivered. Examples galore: Chalayan, Rei Kawakubo, Margiela. However, most of Lucian's speech was focused on architecture and the link with clothing and craftsmanship. Imagine my thrill seeing before my eyes so many contemporary architects and see how the buildings they create can reflect a state of mind and translate into fashion. A great example was the work of Natalia Brilli. I am a fan now!

The interaction between individual and the clothes he wears is essential and it is somehow close to the subject presented by Alina Ene. However, the two presented different examples, one reason more to appreciate the diversity which can be generated in this domain. Yet another point was a brief focus upon the projects and performances made by Vanessa Beefcroft.

What I considered to be a major slip from a time management point of view was that the ASVOFF was still running when I had to rush out to get to the fashion shows. I was among the last people to leave who also attended the sows but I honestly couldn't be more sad for having to miss the end of the screening. Otherwise, ASVOFF was everything I expected it to be and even more. Some of the features weren't new to me, like this one I posted here this time last year or the Gareth Pugh video this still comes from. Find the video below:

But ASVOFF is a great selection of short films and an extremely inspiring project to watch unfold right before your eyes.

Here is Diane together with Catinca Untaru, who acted as her translator:

This wraps up the first part of the second event day at CFW. Stay tuned for the next.